Didactic apparatus

ABSTRACT

This invention is concerned with didactic structural apparatus and comprises a plurality of uniformly shaped and dimensioned cuboidal units and connecting means therefore whereby said units can be assembled to provide stable examples of areas and threedimensional solids which can be used in the teaching of arithmetic and geometry.

1 51 Jan. 18, 1972 United States Patent Tacey References Cited DIDACTICAPPARATUS UNITED STATES PATENTS [72] Inventor: Charles Arthur Tacey,London, England Assignee: Philograph Publications Limited, London,3,274,727 Zander...................................46/31 X EnglandFORElGN PATENTS OR APPLlCATIONS .,...35/7O .....35/70 Great ....46/261,392,930 2/1965 France1............ 744,850 2/1956 Great Britain...890,608 3/1962 [22] Filed: July 8, 1970 [21] Appl.No.: 53,100

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data July 10, 1969 Primary Examinerwm. H. Grieb Attorney-Linton & Linton GreatBritain......................34,815/69 ABSTRACT This invention isconcerned with didactic structural apparatus and comprises a pluralityof uniformly shaped and dimensioned cuboidal units and connecting meanstherefore whereby said units can be assembled to provide stable examplesof areas and three-dimensional solids which can be used in the teachingof arithmetic and geometry.

.35/31 R, 31 G 31 D, 70,72,

[5i] [58] FieldofSear-ch...........,......

4 Claims, 2 Drawing Figures PATENTED JAN 1 8 I972 INVENTOR; CHARLESARTHUR THCEY RT ORNEVS DIDACTIC APPARATUS This invention relatesprimarily to didactic constructional apparatus more particularly forteaching the basic principles of arithmetic and solid and planegeometry, and has for its principal object to provide means wherebyteachers and students will be enabled to assemble units, e.g., cubes andcuboid fonns, so as to demonstrate, for example, breadth X width Xheight formulas in relation to assemblies of concrete units of uniformsize.

Constructional apparatus according to the invention, and in oneembodiment, comprises a plurality of uniformly shaped and dimensionedunits each having on one face a spigot projection and in an oppositeparallel face a corresponding recess or socket whereby said units may befrictionally connected one to the other to form rods incorporating anyrequired number of units; a reticular sheet or sheets of relativelystiff material each formed with uniformly arranged interstices spacedapart in accordance with the dimensions of said units and correspondingin size and adapted to receive the spigots thereof; and a plurality offriction fit caps for fitting to the spigots of individual units. Thethickness of said apertured sheets and said caps is less than the depthof a spigot. Said apertured sheets are hereinafter usually referred toas reticules.

Said units may be composed of any suitable material, for example one ofthe so-called plastics compositions, a hard rubber or rubberlikecomposition, wood, or the like, Said reticules and caps may be formed ofa plastics material, metal, stout paper, or any other suitable material.

In use, a required number of said units are laid in a jux taposed row orrows on a flat surface, with their spigots uppermost, so as to fonn arectangle of desired size. This array of units may represent, forexample, a particular area, L units in length by B units in breadth, orthe base of a cube or a cuboid form.

A reticule of appropriate size, or a series of smaller overlappedreticules, is or are placed over said units so that the spigots of thelatter project through the interstices of the reticule whereby the unitsare held together as in a matrix.

By means of their sockets or recesses, a second layer or course ofunits, and so on may be superposed on and be joined to the first formedlayer or course of units thereby to form a cuboidal shape having alength L, breadth B and a height H corresponding respectively to thenumber (L) of units in each row, the number (B) of rows of units, andthe number (H) of layers of units superposed one upon the other.Reticules may be interposed wherever necessary to achieve stability ofthe formed shape, and an upper or terminal reticule can be held in placeby friction caps fitted to the spigots of the uppermost (or a single)layer or course of units.

Thus, the units are readily connectable one with the other vertically bymeans of their spigots and sockets, and are connectable in side-bysidecontiguous relationship by the reticules, The resultant forms or shapesmay as readily be dismantled and the units repeatedly reused.

The invention is further described with the aid of the accompanyingdrawings which illustrate by way of example only, one embodiment.

In said drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an assembly of units according to theinvention with some of said units shown in phantom and with parts brokenaway thereby to show their construction and the method of connection.

FIG. 2 is a side elevation of an assembly of connected units.

Referring to said drawings, each unit is in the shape of a cubeconsisting in this instance of a hollow plastics moulding aboutthree-quarters of an inch square and one face whereof is open thereby toconstitute a recess or socket 11. The opposite face is formed with amedial rectangular spigot projection 12 of dimensions such as to be afriction fit as shown in the socket 11 of a fellow unit 10. Said spigots12 are about three sixteenths of an inch in depth and preferably formedwith a central aperture 13. I

Reticules 20 for connecting said units 10, as shown. may

also be moulded from a plastics material, or blanked out from a sheet ofplastics material, and are generally rectangular in shape being formedwith rows of rectangular interstices 21 dimensioned and arranged asshown so as to receive the spigots 12 of an array of units 10 whenarranged in contiguous rows. Said reticules 20 are of a thickness suchas to provide for the frictional interlocking of superposed layers orcourses of units 10 one with the other. Said reticules 20 may be of anydesired size adapted to receive any number of said units 10. In a basicform which has been found convenient, said reticules 20 comprise tenrows of ten interstices 21. Small reticules can readily be cut from sucha sheet.

Friction fit caps 30 are provided for engagement with the spigots 12 ofindividual units 10 said caps 30 each comprising an open rectangular(square) frame the sides whereof are of a depth less than the depth ofthe spigots l2. Said caps 30 may be used to hold the units 10 of atwo-dimensional array in place within the interstices of a reticule 20,or to square off the top of a three dimensional assembly.

It will be seen that constructional apparatus according to theinvention, and comprising an assemblage of interlocking units 10,complementary reticules 20 and friction caps 30 provides a means wherebyteachers and students are enabled to form practical concrete examples ofareas and three-dimensional solids, thereby to form analoguesdemonstrating the concepts and elements essential to the introduction,examination, and operation of the principles employed with multibasedarithmetic.

It is envisaged that constructional apparatus according to the inventionmay be used for heuristic purposes in the building of structuresgenerally.

I claim:

1. Didactic constructional apparatus, comprising a plurality ofuniformly shaped and dimensioned units, each unit having on one face aspigot projection and in an opposite parallel face a correspondingsocket whereby said units may be fn'ctionally connected one to the otherto form rods incorporating any required number of units; one or morereticular sheets formed with uniformly spaced interstices spaced apartin accordance with the dimensions of said units and corresponding insize and adapted to receive the spigots of said units whereby said unitsmay be connected in side-by-side relationship; and a plurality offriction fit caps for fitting to the spigots of individual units: andthe thickness of the or each reticular sheet and of each cap being lessthan the depth of a spigot.

2. Constructional apparatus, as claimed in claim I, wherein said unitseach are of hollow cuboidal shape one face whereof is open to form asquare socket and the opposite face comprises a square spigot projectionhaving a central aperture.

3. Constructional apparatus, as claimed in claim 2, wherein saidreticular sheets are generally rectangular in shape being formed withrows of rectangular interstices dimensioned and arranged so as toreceive the spigot projections of an array of units when arranged in acontiguous row or rows.

4. Constructional apparatus, as claimed in claim 2 wherein said frictionfit caps are in the form of square open frames dimensioned so as to befriction fit upon the spigot projections of said units.

1. Didactic constructional apparatus, comprising a plurality ofuniformly shaped and dimensioned units, each unit having on one face aspigot projection and in an opposite parallel face a correspondingsocket whereby said units may be frictionally connected one to the otherto form rods incorporating any required number of units; one or morereticular sheets formed with uniformly spaced interstices spaced apartin accordance with the dimensions of said units and corresponding insize and adapted to receive the spigots of said units whereby said unitsmay be connected in side-by-side relationship; and a plurality offriction fit caps for fitting to the spigots of individual units: andthe thickness of the or each reticular sheet and of each cap being lessthan the depth of a spigot.
 2. Constructional apparatus, as claimed inclaim 1, wherein said units each are of hollow cuboidal shape one facewhereof is open to form a square socket and the opposite face comprisesa square spigot projection having a central aperture.
 3. Constructionalapparatus, as claimed in claim 2, wherein said reticular sheets aregenerally rectangular in shape being formed with rows of rectangularinterstices dimensioned and arrAnged so as to receive the spigotprojections of an array of units when arranged in a contiguous row orrows.
 4. Constructional apparatus, as claimed in claim 2 wherein saidfriction fit caps are in the form of square open frames dimensioned soas to be friction fit upon the spigot projections of said units.